Zzzzz..eh? What’s going on, where’s my trousers?
A new Input page you say <rubs eyes> can the nightmare finally becoming to an end? Well it could be, the pubs are reopening and we are treated to our first slew of letters since Prog 2180.
9 weeks later we have the lovely
Prog 2189 which sees five letters across the inside back page, and not all of them are thanking Tharg for keeping working during the pandemic. I hear certain writers attempted to mine that seam without success. Quite right too - publish and be criticised, it’s the British way.
After some positive feedback from Dandontdare we have continued with our fledgling policy of illustrating each letter with a picture off the internet. This month we are going for what the reader’s name first conjures up in our fevered mind.
We open with
Tristan ‘Fourmile’ Carlyon of that London. This is Tristan’s first letter to see print and it’s a letter of the week too. He will need to keep writing if he’s going to make it to ‘Top Tris’ as Mr Louth is away in the distance on 16 in his Chelmsford bolthole. He was last seen in Prog 2145 so at least Mr Carlyon has the 2020 bragging rights.
Tristan’s letter is the well worn standard of ‘I was lost but now I’m found’. Tharg loves the chance to use lots of his
BOLD TYPE and to promote many of his offerings. In these terrible times Tris’ letter was a nice read and worthy of the top table honours - or is there better to come?
Next up is another new scribe and a junior one at that. 11 year old
Josh Shrubsole, again of that London, tells a lovely story of his Dad giving him a box from the attic. The one you get at 16 will be better Josh! Josh is keen on most things and isn’t shy on demanding swag (as the kids call it) from Tharg. The Green One says no but appreciates the chance of the Regened comic getting a plug as well as some future offerings.
This is the first Shrubsole letter to see print but more surprisingly it’s only the third ‘Josh’. Finney of Prog 1416 and Davies of Prog 2074 welcome Mr S to their ranks. I’m guessing actually, they could be self isolating for all I know.
Great, Smashing Super, It’s
Ade Bowen of Weston Super Mare next in his 14th Beast offering. Ade was last seen in Prog 2124 and boasts 11 Prog and 3 Megazine appearances. He has three letters of the week crowns including one in Prog 1659 that had a photo of a baby - we haven’t recorded if it’s Ade’s or of Ade.
Ade does a quick run through the Prog and loves everything. New stuff, old stuff, crossovers - he’ll take it all, even Sinister Dexter. He’s keen to see things develop but we’re guessing he’ll like it anyway. Smashing. The letter is titled ‘Superheavy’ which is a bit personal, but lockdown has been tough on us all.
A bit of
Hong Kong Phooey next as
Gary Meggitt rocks up from the former colony with his first offering. Only four letters have ever appeared from Hong Kong and two of them, unbelievably, are from women! Without running a search I can safely say that Honk Hong has the highest female comic letters writing ratio anywhere. Take a bow, er, courtesy Sarah Griffiths (Prog 653) and Jayne Corbett (Prog 820).
Gary’s letter is anther run through things he loves apart from a boot in the jaffers to ‘The Order’ which Tharg totally ignores. Gary likes most stuff however, and is rewarded with a Stickleback return.
We finish up with
Graham Colebeck of Bournemouth who is the only writer to praise Tharg’s droids for working through the crisis. He may however have the fever as he loves ‘The Order’! He does give a mixed review to the Prog in general and the demise of The Survival Geeks makes it a downbeat ending to the page. Which is fair enough really.
This is Graham’s 6th letter and 4th in the Prog he was previously seen in Prog 2061 in 2017.
Overall a mixed bag of letters with the bag being marked ‘lacklustre letters’. I would have given Josh the thrill of ‘Letter of the Week’ with his being the pick of a largely pedestrian bunch.
See you in a couple of months!
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